Running Shoes

Back in July I got these bad boys and I loved them. I loved the color, the way they looked and felt on my feet, but I did not like my sore left achilles after a run. Some days it bothered me more than others but I just thought it was my feet getting use to new shoes.
 
 Well, here we are in September and and I'm still having problems. I run about 20 miles a week so by now my shoes should be broken in. I did some research and found that many people alternate between running shoes. I thought that might be helpful so I thought it was at least worth a try. Before I got some new shoes though, I thought I'd go to fleet feet and have them evaluate me and let me know what kind I needed.

Yes, I know its terribly sad when I've been running for 3 years and have never been to get fitted for running shoes. I thought I knew what I needed but after my achilles problem I knew it was time to consult some people who really knew what they were doing. They measured my foot, watched me run, and then told me something I had never been told before: my ankles turn a little when I run... especially my left foot. We talked about what shoes I was wearing and DING DING DING... there's the problem.

 Brooks Pure Connect are great shoes, but not for me. They are minimalists and offer very little stability and support which is what I (and most people) need for running. Another interesting fact is though they sell a lot of minimalist shoes, they don't recommend them. You are more prone to injury when you wear a lighter less supportive shoe.

Yes, yes I know there has been all kinds of research proving other wise. I'm just stating what the girl there told me and especially after my own experience it makes perfect sense. So shoe shopping we must go!

Pinterest Dinner

Monday night I needed dinner inspiration. I wanted a substantial meal that didn't take too long to throw together.

And this is why I love Pinterest. All those meals I pinned, and yet I never looked at again. That changed Monday..

One dinner that I had pinned awhile back looked to good to be true. The stubborn part of me wanted to prove that you can't throw 3 different things in a pan sprinkle stuff on top and bake for an hour... and it turn out good.

It took less than 5 minutes to throw together and it was delicious.

It doesn't even have a name. Sad.



-4-6 raw chicken breasts, new potatoes, green beans
 -Arrange in 9x13 dish. Sprinkle with a packet of Italian dressing mix and then top with a 1/2 stick melted butter.
 -Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

You can really use any veggie you'd like. I used okra and it was delish. Thank you Pinterest!

Hillsong Concert

Words can not describe how incredible it was to stand in a sanctuary with thousands of believers from all over and for 2 hours do nothing but worship.

Hillsong was at Bellevue last night. It was by far one of the coolest experiences of my life. I am so thankful for churches like Bellevue and Hope that bring solid concerts to our area. Not just any concerts but concerts where you walk away refreshed, revived, and loving Jesus more than when you walked in the doors.

These were 2 of my favorites from last night.


The Desert Song
This is my prayer in the desert
And all that's within me feels dry
This is my prayer in the hunger in me
My God is a God who provides

All of my life
In every season
You are still God
I have a reason to sing
I have a reason to worship
And this is my prayer in the fire
In weakness or trial or pain
There is a faith proved
Of more worth than gold
So refine me Lord through the flames

And I will bring praise
I will bring praise
No weapon forged against me shall remain

I will rejoice
I will declare
God is my victory and He is here

And this is my prayer in the battle
And triumph is still on it's way
I am a conqueror and co-heir with Christ
So firm on His promise I'll stand

All of my life
In every season
You are still God
I have a reason to sing
I have a reason to worship

This is my prayer in the harvest
When favor and providence flow
I know I'm filled to be emptied again
The seed I've received I will sow   Cornerstone
My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus' blood and righteousness
I dare not trust the sweetest frame
but wholly trust in Jesus' name

Christ alone, Cornerstone
Weak made strong, in the Savior's love
Through the storm
He is Lord, Lord of All

When darkness seems to hide His face
I rest on His unchanging grace
In every high and stormy gale
My anchor holds within the veil

My anchor holds within the veil

He is Lord, Lord of all

Then He shall come with trumpets sound
Oh, may I then in Him be found
Dressed in His righteousness alone
faultless, stand before the throne 

Just a glimpse of how our night was...

Missouri Wedding

Friday I dropped my kids off at lunch and then met up with my family. We loaded up and headed to Missouri for my cousin's wedding. We made it there in time to unload, freshen up, and drive over to the rehearsal dinner. It was so good getting to see my Missouri family and catch up. Seeing them once a year or even every other year just isn't near enough time.

I awoke Saturday morning to it pouring down rain. I forgot to mention the wedding was suppose to be outside. Boo for rain however... with everyone else in the house still fast asleep I was able to have some sweet alone time with a great cup of coffee , pricilla shirer and God's word.



Before long Kacie was squealing, whining and jumping as she attempted to cook bacon... and I must say it was worth it b/c the bacon was delicious. The boys stayed round the house watching football and us girls went shopping... which turned into me shopping and mom pushing kacie around in a wheel chair... no I'm not kidding. It kept her happy and with fewer complaints.

The afternoon approached and it was still pouring down rain so we assumed they moved all the wedding stuff inside.

Negative.

We stood with umbrellas at the park. Despite the rain, the wedding was beautiful. Allie was a beautiful bride who was happy to be getting married despite the weather conditions. Their excitement was sweet to witness even when we were cold and standing in mud... in heels might I add.

She added so many personal touches to the wedding. It was a laid back but very classy, well planned... down to every detail kind of wedding.

Riley enjoyed  the wedding too.

 

Giving of the bride.

Vows

Reception

Allie and Ty leaving.

Sister

Yes that is Daniel Jerkins in the middle, in the green shirt , watching football on his phone.

Us with the bride. Can you tell we're cousins?

Welcome to the Wilderness

^" When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” Exodus 13:17

God chose the wilderness for the people of Israel.

Just like he chooses for us...a different path than we'd choose for ourselves. A path that is harder, lonelier and maybe even more costly than we'd like. A path... for the life of us, can't figure out .

Rest assured though, God knows what he's doing.

There are some things we don't know about oursleves until we are put in a position where we have to see God's power operating through us... our wilderness. A job loss, broken relationship, death of a loved one, etc... times in our life that don't make sense to us... all the while God has allowed or led us to this point to fully experience Him.

Job was a "blameless, upright man." Yet he experienced more heartache and agony than one person should. He had every right to be angry and frustrated with God. But what did he say in Job 42:5? "I have heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you."

He never really experienced God until the hardship... his wilderness... when the things that were happening made no sense to him or anyone else. Yet, he realized God's plan and purpose was bigger than anyone could imagine. It's in our times in the wilderness that we really experience Christ like never before.


Back to the Isarealites...

The Israelite's had no idea that God was actually protecting them. Had they taken the shorter, easier route they would have run into war and been scared straight back to Egypt... their bondage, slavery.

God does the very same things for us. He sees the bigger picture. He knows whats best for us despite our whining and complaining because of our inconvenience.

We have 3 choices: 
-get scared and run back to our Egypt
-half hardheartedly follow Christ but whine and comlpain the whole time
-shut up and trust Him

Cotton Pickin 5k

This was my second year to run in this race in Somerville and I absolutely love it. I love the small town feel and the challenge of this course. Unfortunately my running buddy wasn't going to be able to run it with me.

 Some storms came through Friday night leaving everything wet and cool. As I was leaving the house Saturday morning, it dawned on me that Allie's daughter's soccer game had to be rained out so I text her and told her to come and run. She threw some clothes on and flew the 35 minutes to meet me just in time for the race.

It was the perfect morning for a race. It was cloudy and cool and when the wind blew, it blew water from the trees leaving you with a refreshing sprinkle.

We approached the starting line with one goal in mind: to beat my last years time of 28 minutes. The last race we ran together was the one we ran a year ago and finished in 34 minutes. Boo. So we were excited to see if all of our hard word had paid off.

27 minutes later we crossed the finish line. Not only did we beat my time from last year but we were 7 minutes faster than our last race together!

I'd call that success.

 The whole gang

Fat Friday

Well this is somewhat true. I don't really post about politics on fb, but food on the other hand I do. Since, I did make a political point in the previous post I thought it was ok to add this picture and not sound like a complete ditz who loves food.

Rather than, "Hey I made pancakes!"... how about "Hey, I made chocolate cobbler!" Yep sure did. We were eating left over pork tenderloin and veggies for dinner last night so I thought I needed to make a yummy dessert to go with my lack of effort over dinner.

Enter Pinterest.

Yes, I found pinterest again. I stayed away all summer kind of burnt out. When I needed a good dessert idea though I knew where I needed to go and it did not disappoint. It led me to this:

 Chocolate Cobbler

Ingredients:

2 stk	butter
1 1/4 c	sugar
1 1/2 c	self rising flour
1 tsp	vanilla
3/4 c	milk
CHOCOLATE LAYER
1 c	sugar
6 Tbsp	cocoa powder
2 c	boiling water

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. In a 9x13 glass baking dish, melt the two sticks of butter in the oven.

Meanwhile in a bowl, mix together the 1 1/4cups of sugar, flour, vanilla and milk. Once the butter is melted pour the batter over the butter, but do not stir.

In a separate bowl mix together the cocoa and remaining sugar.

Sprinkle cocoa/sugar mixture on top of batter. Do not stir.

Pour the 2 cups of boiling water on top of that (don't stir) and bake for 30-45 minutes. I bake mine until I have a nice golden brown crust. Serve warm. Great with ice cream.

Happy Fat Friday!

Hope for Change

Dr. Roger's daily devo from this morning:

"The Meaning of Everything

 ". . . all things were created by Him, and for Him." Colossians 1:16b

Do you want to know the meaning of everything? It is Jesus only. You may think that is an overstatement. We live in a great big universe, billions of light years in expanse. And the Bible tells us that "all things were created by Him, and for Him" (Colossians 1:16).

There is nothing made that was not made by the Lord Jesus. The answer to creation is Jesus only. People say, "the world needs saving." But what the world really needs is redemption. And where is redemption going to come from? Not from a creed, code, or cause, but Jesus only.

The entire universe, the plans of God, and the sweep of all the ages comes down to two words - Jesus only."

As I read this devo this morning I couldn't help but think about the presidential election. Both parties claiming they have the solutions to our country's problems... what they'll do to turn our country around. Both have great arguments that sound good in theory, but in reality could it be fleshed out? Is is practical? Would it work? I'm not so sure. I do know the foundations that I stand on and which party upholds those and protects them... so I know who I'm voting for, yet I know even my choice for president  isn't really the answer.

One thing I know is certain. No matter who is elected as our next president the only one who can truly turn our country around or like in the devo "save our world" is Jesus. He truly is our only hope for change.

One in a Million

Our ladies bible study started last night. (Enter a happy sigh here) I love our women's bible studies. God's word opened, a talented speaker in front of me and a good cup of warm decaf coffee in my hand... yes please. 

We are doing Priscilla Shirer's One in a Million. I actually did this with a small group of women a few summers ago, but was still thrilled to hear our women's ministry as a whole was going to be going through it. And I couldn't wait to do it again.

Here's a glimpse of what we were challenged with last night. (paraphrased by me)

Our God is a God of abundance. God doesn't desire us to merely live but he came so that we could live abundantly.

But, are we?

What is holding us back from living the abundant life God has called us to? A couple of years ago, I did Beth Moore's breaking free bible study. I know I shared on here then that I really didn't think I needed that study since I wasn't addicted to anything. Yea, jokes on me right.

Bondage is anything that holds us back from living the life that Christ has called us to. Not just a drug or alcohol addiction.

Priscilla told us the story of a circus elephant tied to a stake in the ground. It seems so silly that this giant beast doesn't break free from this simple chain of bondage yet he doesn't know any better.

Sorry friends, we are not that elephant. We know better.

Because we have surrendered our lives to Christ, we may be free from the person of satan but we may still be living in the places of him. Are you? Is there something that you realize is hindering your walk with Christ? TV show, music, movies, friends, other relationships?

Scripture tells us to “rid ourselves of every hindrance.”

The rubber meets the road here: will we stay put on our comfortable little church pews looking the part of the perfect Christian and saying all the right things yet stuck in our comfortable little worlds or will we be bold and make a move that will revolutionize our walks with Christ?

We can say the right things all day. We can even look the part, but what would happen if we really experienced Christ?

“You can’t do what you’ve always done and expect different results.”

Its time ladies to get off the pews.

Labor Day Weekend

This past weekend was spent the very same way the last 5 labor day weekends have been spent. (Minus the year hallie was born because her due date was too close to make an out of town trip)

So other than that year we've spent every labor day in Muscle Shoals, Alabama...



where we did some of this:

Played/laid out by the pool




Boys played a ton of golf


Training didn't stop because of vacation


Busted. Stealing some of d's candy


The big girls spent some wonderfully relaxing time here.


Early mornings in the word are the best on vacation

My favorite Foremans' after meeting the boys at the clubhouse for lunch

While on our trip, I learned a couple of things. The first being that we'll never own a king bed. We're not necessarily all night cuddlers, but I don't want him a mile away during the night either. It may be great for some, but not for us.

Secondly, I gained a greater understanding of the impact I have on my 4 favorite little people. It's no secret I adore my nieces and nephew. They make life so fun and I can't imagine our lives without them. I have noticed that when they come to our house rather than going and getting the  toys we have out of the playroom to play with they'd rather go into my closet and model every pair of shoes I own. This weekend was no different. They walked around in my shoes throughout the hotel rooms. Then fought over the new pair of heels I scored on clearance. As I watched them walk impressively well in heels that most women don't attempt, I was reminded that though they love walking in my literal shoes they also like to walk in my figurative ones as well. They want to listen to the music I listen to, wear the lip gloss I just put on, put on the bracelets I'm  wearing, they repeat the things I say, and possibly model the attitudes and behaviors they see from me. How scary! I have 8 precious little eyes and ears watching and listening to me. I am so thankful for the relationship I have with them, but as Peter Parker's uncle Ben said, "With great power (privilege) comes great responsibility." 

Boy, is that true. 

Julie and Jeff have so graciously shared these little ones with us it is our responsibility to make sure we are pointing them to Jesus. What do they hear when I speak? What kind of behaviors/attitudes of mine do I want them repeating? And whats even scarier is they don't miss a thing!

This weekend was very relaxing but also very eye opening. I'll never be able to wear those new shoes without remembering this treasure of a lesson.